


Stars shining bright above you...

by AllKindsOfEverything



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Family Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-09
Updated: 2019-01-09
Packaged: 2019-10-07 10:16:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17364125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AllKindsOfEverything/pseuds/AllKindsOfEverything
Summary: Blue & Yellow have a gift for Steven.This is set after a long and tedious redemption arch; I just needed something fluffy and sweet, so you're getting it now instead of in five years or so.





	Stars shining bright above you...

**Author's Note:**

> It's Steven's birthday; the Crystal Gems are chilling at the beach, but Pearl & Steven went back to the house to get snacks when...

The warp pad activated with its usual chime, the bright flash fading to reveal two Diamonds.   
They had shrunk down as much as decency permitted them to fit semi-comfortably on the platform together, neither of them complaining at how close they had to stand to make it work.

"You came!" Steven exclaimed, running towards them, his hands thrown in the air, sporting a bright grin. Behind him, Pearl tried hard to suppress a growl.

Next to Blue, Yellow shifted uncomfortably, her cheeks flushing ochre.   
"Yes, well," she held out their present to him stiffly, her other hand remaining clutched behind her back.

"Happy Birthday, Steven." Blue stepped off the pad and knelt down, a surprised giggle escaping her when Steven flung his arms around her as best as he could. She regained her composure quickly enough to return the hug before the boy pulled back to smile up at Yellow.

"Are you going to take this or...," she asked, referring to the gift she was still holding.

"Oh," Steven giggled and reached for it, "sorry." He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "I'm just so happy you're here."

"We  _ were _ invited," Yellow's delight expertly hid behind the confusion in her voice.

"I know," Steven shrugged. "But Homeworld is so far away, and you're so busy, so I wasn't sure you'd find the time."

"After Pearl explained how important birthdays are to you, it was self-evident that our presence was required."

Blue stood back up and curled her hands around Yellow's arm, leaning against her. "What Yellow is trying to say is; you are much more important to us than any task on Homeworld."

Lifting her head, Yellow's voice edged on grouchiness, "Of course we had to reschedule several-"

"-Yellow."

"We are here now."

"That's what matters." Steven quickly nodded, hoping his interference soothed the Diamond. He was almost certain Yellow's face turned a shade darker, but he didn't mention it.  
"What is this?" He examined the box in his hands thoroughly. The wrapping paper glistened a warm gold, being held in place by a deep blue silk bow.

"It  _ is _ expected to present the host with a gift on this occasion," Yellow furrowed her brow, glaring in Pearl's direction, "isn't it?"   
If it turned out to have been a ruse, heads would roll. Her hand curled in on itself behind her back.

"Oh," Steven blushed. "Yes."   
They were here and they had brought him a present. His heart swelled with pride. They were trying so hard. He loved them for it.

"Good." Yellow growled, her fingers relaxing involuntarily. She stiffened when Blue stepped closer, her cool fingers lacing through hers where her hand was still tucked into its familiar place at the small of her back.

Feeling like she was intruding on some sort of family moment, Pearl decided it was best to leave the three of them alone before either of the Diamonds' temper had another reason to flare up. She snuck out the door unnoticed, joining her fellow Crystal Gems at the campfire on the beach.

"I hope you'll like it," Blue smiled gently at Steven, secretly brushing her thumb across the back of Yellow's gloved hand in a soothing motion. She smirked, "Yellow wanted to get you a battleship, but-"

"-I did no such thing!" Yellow pulled away, ready to defend herself when the look on Blue's face made her realise she had been teasing. Squinting, she crossed her arms over her chest, "I only said that it would be more comfortable for him to have a spaceship of his own to come visit whenever, wherever, instead of having to rely on the warp pad. There was no talk of a  _ battle _ ship."

"A spaceship?" Steven stared up at her with stars in his eyes.

"Well, we discarded  _ that  _ idea." Yellow shrugged, knowing from the smirk on Blue's face that the heat she was feeling in her cheeks was showing quite clearly.

"Awwww," Steven looked down at his present, pouting slightly.

Looking at him and then at each other, the Diamonds wordlessly agreed that he reminded them of his mother more than ever in this moment.

"Well...." Quickly recovering from his initial disappointment, he grinned up at the two. "What did you get me then?"

Blue laughed and ruffled his hair, "How about you open it?"

He didn't need telling twice, tearing through the paper like a wild animal, much to Blue's delight and Yellow's terror.   
Pulling out a deep green, tetrahedral crystal, he furrowed his brow and turned it over several times before looking towards Blue for an explanation.

"Set it down and tap the top," she encouraged with a tender smile.

Steven walked over to the couch table, setting his gift down in the middle of it. He reached out, his finger hovering over the top of it, and glanced to Yellow. Seeing her nod once, he pressed his fingertip against the crystal and watched in awe as it began to glow.  
Its edges grew brighter and it unfolded, releasing a multitude of tiny orbs into the air that settled around them, hovering above the boy in unfamiliar patterns.   
"Woah." Steven's mouth was agape as he walked through the projections. "What is this?"

"This," Blue lifted her hand and the orbs flew up against the ceiling, "is the night sky of Homeworld."

Stepping up beside her, Yellow brushed her hand down Blue's back. "Blue thought you should have something to remind you of your heritage at the tip of your fingers." She felt her Diamond turn and lean against her, a cool hand curling around her shoulder. Looking into her eyes, she smirked, adding, "Quite literally."

"Yellow uploaded Homeworld's archives to it. You can point at a star and ask about it and the device will answer you."

"But... that was  _ our _ thing," Steven looked back at them, his smile disappearing. 

"And it will remain  _ 'our thing' _ ," Blue soothed quickly. Kneeling in front of the boy, she cupped his cheek in her hand. "This doesn't mean we won't have those nights on the observatory deck anymore." She smiled when he nestled into her touch. "But we can't be with you all the time."

"There's a link built into it." Yellow's voice was low. She felt her cheeks burn when their eyes fell on her. Licking her lips, she straightened her back and continued, "You can ask the device to connect you to either one of us.  _ If  _ you have a question that you would like to have answered directly."

Steven's face lit up. "So," he tried to find a way to word this without making Yellow uncomfortable. "I could activate this when I'm lying in bed... and I could talk to you?"

"You could." Yellow nodded curtly. "The transmitter uses a sub sequence of the Diamond Line. It would open the same star chart on our end, so we could answer-"

"-we could stargaze together." Steven interrupted, beaming brightly. 

"Strictly for educational purposes," Yellow stumbled, her eyes widening when the boy suddenly flung himself into her arms. 

Hugging her neck tightly, Steven's smile was obvious in his voice, "I love you too, Yellow."

Something inside of Yellow Diamond broke at that moment.   
Something small, and warm, and long forgotten.   
Without a word, her lips curled up and she buried her nose in the boy's hair.   
Closing her eyes, she allowed a single tear to fall. For Pink.

**Author's Note:**

> My precious beta @t_hanson keeps up with me. Thank the stars she does or none of this would get posted.
> 
> ...the title is the first line of a song I love.   
> I have trouble coming up with good ones & that was the first thing that crossed my mind.


End file.
